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Update: Jason Taylor participated in Friday’s walkthrough, so it seems safe to assume he’ll be in the lineup against Carolina Saturday night.

Friday talking points with the second and final home preseason game just a day away:

1. Quentin Moses’ chance to step forward could come Saturday.

Quentin Moses (left) and Tearrius George (right) should get plenty of chances to show what they can do Saturday. (Joe Rimkus Jr. / Miami Herald)

Jason Taylor has a family illness issue, Joey Porter is nursing a sore toe and Matt Roth has yet to do anything more than stretch at training camp. Given all that, it’s time for the Dolphins’ depth at outside linebacker to surface, and that means Moses and Tearrius George.

Moses played extensively in the preseason opener and had two tackles, matching his total from last season, when he played in 12 games and started one. He’s had a decent camp, using his 6-foot-5, 260-pound frame and long arms to disrupt pass routes and pressure quarterbacks.

Still, despite having been on the team for 22 months, the former third-round pick of Oakland (2007) out of Georgia remains a largely unknown quantity. This is his chance to change that.

2. Joey Thomas has reason to hope. We wrote in this space yesterday about how Eric Green’s departure buoys the hopes of Jason Allen to not only make the team but become a factor in the secondary. The same holds true for Joey Thomas, and, unlike Allen, Thomas made a statement in Thursday’s morning practice that he’s aware of the opportunity.

On consecutive plays, Thomas made a leaping interception of Pat White in the end zone and batted down passes intended for Brandon London and Ernest Wilford.

Thomas has an edge on some of his teammates in that he played for Bill Parcells, albeit briefly, having spent the 2007 training camp with Parcells in Dallas. Parcells liked what he saw enough to sign him in Miami and has been seen coaching him up from time to time in this year’s camp.

Thomas is still well down the depth chart behind Will Allen and rookies Sean Smith and Vontae Davis, but with Green out of the picture and coach Tony Sparano saying (at least publicly) he’s not in dire need of another cornerback, Thomas’ stock is on the rise.

3. Injuries have not been a concern – at least so far. Hardly a day goes by when you don’t read about some prominent player in some NFL camp going down with a serious injury. The small setbacks suffered by the likes of Justin Smiley and Joey Porter the last two days are a reminder that, much as the did all last year, the Dolphins have largely been able to stay healthy.

Smiley missed an afternoon workout Wednesday with an issue related to the left ankle he had surgically repaired last year. Porter sat out Thursday’s morning session with a toe problem. But both were back at it the next workout.

Sparano spoke last season about how offseason conditioning programs and the work of the team’s trainers and strength coaches had a lot to do with his team’s good health. Luck obviously plays a part as well. But even with improved depth this year, the Dolphins will have to keep the majority of their top players healthy if they hope to repeat as AFC East champs while playing the league’s toughest schedule.